It has been known to use a Ziegler-Natta catalyst containing a titanium compound and an electron donor compound supported on active magnesium halide in olefin polymerization. U.S. Pat. No. 4,544,717 teaches that stereospecificity of a catalyst can be improved by introducing an electron donor compound into a solid component containing a titanium compound. EP 0 045 977 discloses a polymerization catalyst having higher activity and stereospecificity, wherein phthalates are used as internal electron donor compound, silicone compounds containing at least one Si—OR bond (wherein R represents alkyl) are used as external electron donor compound, and aluminum alkyls are used as cocatalyst.
Many electron donor compounds useful in the preparation of Ziegler-Natta catalysts as well as catalysts for olefin polymerization comprising these electron donor compounds have been disclosed. For example, EP0361493 and EP0728724 disclose 1,3-diether compounds, CN1105671A discloses 1,3-diketone compounds, CN1236372A and CN1292800 discloses specific substituted malonate compounds, WO03022894 discloses diesters of maleic acid as electron donor compound. Additionally, CN1446787A and CN1490340A disclose γ-acyloxy-substituted ether compounds having a formula (III), and catalysts for propylene polymerization and exhibiting excellent performance can be prepared using said compounds as internal electron donor added during the preparation of solid component of catalytic system for olefin polymerization through a preparation process similar to that used in the preparation of N-Catalysts (trade name of polypropylene catalyst by Beijing Research Institute of Chemical Industry, SINOPEC, China).

However, known literatures disclose neither 1-hydrocarbyl-2-acyloxy-cyclopentane carboxylate compounds having a general formula (I) as described hereinafter as well as a process for the preparation thereof nor use of the compounds of the formula (I) as electron donor in the preparation of catalysts for olefin polymerization.